reflections on etwinning · the etwinning project is one of a number of educational initiatives...
TRANSCRIPT
eTwinning (www.etwinning.net) is part of the European Commission’s Lifelong LearningProgramme 2007-2013. The objective of the eTwinning action is to strengthen and developnetworking among schools using Information and Communication Technologies (ICT).
The Pedagogical Advisory Group (PAG) set up within the framework of the Central SupportService (CSS) for eTwinning is composed of experts coming from teacher training, schoolinspection and pedagogical research. The role of the PAG is to analyse, reflect and commenton the eTwinning activities and develop a theoretical framework for the eTwinning actionwhich will ensure the lasting pedagogic value of the eTwinning activity in schools.
This series of books aims to elaborate on the outcomes of the work of the PAG.
Members:Pieter Hogenbirk (Chair)Conor GalvinMárta HunyaMichelle SelingerBettina ZeidlerAnne Gilleran (Executive Secretary)
PEDAGOGICAL ADVISORY GROUP
REFLECTIONS ON eTWINNING
February 2007
CULTURAL UNDERSTANDING AND INTEGRATION
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
www.etwinning.net
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CULTURAL UNDERSTANDING AND INTEGRATION
www.etwinning.net
February 2007
PEDAGOGICAL ADVISORY GROUP
REFLECTIONS ON eTWINNING
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Cultural understanding and Integration . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Table of contents
1. Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
2. European Culture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
2.1 Initiatives for promoting intercultural understanding and integration . . . . . . . . . 7
2.2 The challenge for Europe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
3. European Competencies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
4. Teaching and Fostering Cultural Understanding
and Integration in eTwinning. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
4.1 Creating awareness and openness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
4.2 Developing individual expression abilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
4.2.1 Basic and intercultural communication . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
4.2.2 Learning foreign languages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
4.2.3 Using ICT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
4.3 Developing the learner’s management competencies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
5. Managing Intercultural Understanding
and Integration in eTwinning Schools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
5.1 School strategy and philosophy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
5.2 School organisation and curriculum . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
5.3 Multilingualism and language learning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
5.4 Professional development of teachers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
6. Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
Professional Development . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
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PEDAGOGICAL ADVISORY GROUP
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1. Introduction
This paper addresses the important theme of intercultural understanding and cultural
integration of European children and their teachers. The eTwinning project is one of
a number of educational initiatives that can contribute to this theme through small
steps to educate future European Citizens and help European teachers to incorporate
cultural understanding and integration in their teaching.
In Section 2, European culture is defined and the contribution to intercultural understanding
and integration of the eTwinning initiative and the ELOS-project is briefly described in
particular (“Europe as a learning environment in schools”), which is a more in depth
development. Section 3 elaborates on European competencies and the way eTwinning can
put them into practice. How eTwinning can help to teach and foster cultural understanding
and integration is the subject of section 4. We discuss the creation of awareness and
openness, the development of individual expression abilities and the development of
learners’ management competencies. The management at school level is covered in section
5 and in section 6 we provide a summary and some conclusions.
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Author:
Bettina Zeidler
Co-authors:
Conor Galvin
Anne Gilleran
Pieter Hogenbirk
Márta Hunya
Michelle Selinger
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2. European Culture
“We insist on the full engagement of the pupils because they can only participate if they
are really motivated. And working with motivated pupils is really rewarding!!! In the
partner country, they exchange with a European class where it is also part of the
curriculum. Pupils will experience European citizenship as a quality of attitudes,
interactions of individuals related to one big society.”
Manuella Borghs, teacher at Sint-Dimpnacollege (Belgium) [1]
To describe the effects of eTwinning on cultural understanding and integration, it is first necessary
to consider the meaning of “culture”. There are several definitions about what a culture is, yet
most of them seem to be modifications of the definition of anthropologist E. B. Tylor who said
that culture is "that complex whole which includes knowledge, belief, art, morals, law, custom,
and any other capabilities and habits acquired by man as a member of society". [2]
In the scope of lifelong learning, the European Commission defines “[interpersonal, intercultural
and social competencies, civic competence” as those key competencies that “cover all forms of
behaviour that equip individuals to participate in an effective and constructive way in social and
working life, and particularly in increasingly diverse societies, and to resolve conflict where
necessary. Civic competence equips individuals to fully participate in civic life, based on
knowledge of social and political concepts and structures and a commitment to active and
democratic participation.” [3]
Both definitions describe cultures as not only marked by their material productions like art,
literature, social institutions, artefacts of daily life, reproduction and preservation through history,
but also through attitudes and beliefs, ways of thinking, behaving and remembering shared by
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[1] LEARNING WITH eTWINNING, Published in April 2006 by: Central Support Service for eTwinning, EuropeanSchoolnet, Rue de Trèves 61, B-1040 Brussels, Belgium
[2] Truman State University, http://www2.truman.edu/~rgraber/cultev/tylor.html[3] COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES: Proposal for a RECOMMENDATION OF THE EUROPEAN
PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL on key competencies for lifelong learning, Brussels, 10.11.2005
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a community.[4] This implies to recognise the “specific codes of conduct and manners generally
accepted in different societies and environments (e.g., at work), and to be aware of basic concepts
relating to individuals, groups, work organisations, gender equality, society and culture.” [5]
Of course, European people with different cultural backgrounds retain their own values,
attitudes, norms and behaviours, and yet they have common historical roots. Languages,
literature, performing arts, visual arts, architecture, crafts, etc., may be different and
individual examples may originate in one country or region, but they are part of
Europe’s common cultural heritage.[6] Therefore, in developing cultural understanding and
integration it is necessary to appreciate one’s own and other cultures and to use both as
common enriching forces.[7]
2.1 Initiatives for promoting interculturalunderstanding and integration
Diverse initiatives like the “Citizens for Europe 2007-2013” programme[8] are intended to
preserve and promote this cultural diversity and to help to make it accessible to all. The main
objective is to put in place a European cultural area that unites all Europeans while
preserving their national and regional diversity. Mutual understanding, respect and
recognised common values, history and culture will help in forming a European identity. This
European identity could mean, for instance, to preserve European values such as peace,
democracy, tolerance, freedom, solidarity and equality.
In addition to the development of a European identity, the school initiative ELOS aims at
preparing pupils effectively for their role as European citizens by using Europe as a ‘tool’ and
[4] Pachler Norbert Teaching and learning culture, , Institute of Education, University of London (1999);www.ioe.ac.uk/schools
[5] ibid, footnote 2[6] Youth, culture and European citizenship, http://europa.eu/abc/europein2005/youth-culture-citizenship_en.htm[7] Bundeszentrale für politische Bildung, Hywel Ceri Jones, Chairman of the European Policy Centre (EPC) and director
of the Network of European Foundations (NEF),http://www.bpb.de/themen/G3BDTI,0,Europas_Zivilgesellschaft.html
[8] EP Report on "Citizens for Europe", http://www.federaleurope.org/index.php?id=4143
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an environment for the education. ELOS schools subscribe to a ‘European and International
Orientation’ (EIO) in the curriculum which defines subject areas and international activities
with partner pupils and teachers from abroad.[9] Thus, European citizenship is transferred into
concrete activities related to learning, studying, living and working in the European Union.
Working together with different schools and initiatives, ELOS aims to make visible all serious
efforts undertaken by schools towards educating a new generation of European citizens.
eTwinning fits perfectly into this context as it contributes to developing common European
values by offering realistic European learning contexts and therefore the chance to promote
cultural understanding and integration. As Solveig Wiegand, a teacher at the German lower-
secondary school “Georg-August-Zinn Schule” in Büdingen-Düdelsheim said: “eTwinning brings
a piece of real Europe into the classroom and prepares pupils for living in the future Europe.
Suddenly, young people get an idea of the respective partner country. In common with their partner
pupils they work on the same topic, prepare a homepage and write many emails. The common
acting links the youth, even if a ‘real’ meeting is not possible for financial reasons.” [10]
2.2 The challenge for Europe
“I chose to begin this venture for 2 reasons: First, I am deeply attached to the idea of European
cultural awareness which is not born with the ‘Traité de Rome’ but was created and laid down
throughout the ages. Erasmus, Rousseau, Goethe, Kafka, Michelangelo, Cervantés…helped us
to create these values that we share and keep alive even if we have not red these authors. These
values belong to our educational background and we have an everyday need for it. We want our
students to share that. Secondly, the idea to collaborate with colleagues from other countries
using the web seems to me very appealing. A European identity might not be obvious to
everybody but eTwinning will help us to draw it.”
Marina Marino, teacher at Liceo Scientifico Statale “Francesco Cecioni” (Italy)[11]
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[9] Schools for European citizenship: http://myeurope.eun.org/ww/de/pub/myeurope/home/news/headlines/ELOS.htm[10] eTwinning: Praxishandbuch für Lehrkräfte, Europäische Schulpartnerschaften über das Internet; Schulen ans Netz,
2. Auflage April 2006[11] LEARNING WITH eTWINNING, Published in April 2006 by: Central Support Service for eTwinning, European
Schoolnet, Rue de Trèves 61, B-1040 Brussels, Belgium
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There seem to be two important aspects to take into account in the search for a definition
of a common European cultural identity.
First of all, the existence and identities of minorities is an integral element of the European
identity. Nations are multicultural in themselves with migrants from other European
countries as well as countries outside Europe. It is essential to respect minority cultures, to
learn from them and integrate them as far as possible. All minorities have to be taken
seriously and treated with equal respect so that multicultural nations and a common
European identity can exist and grow peacefully side by side.
The other aspect arising from increasingly interconnecting European nations is the fact that
they are becoming more dependent on one another. Differences may become even more
evident than they were before and such integration processes also generate “painful areas of
friction”.[12] If this process, however, is managed properly, cultural diversity is considered as
a growing potential and an advantage since it may enhance living and working quality
through effectiveness, productivity and creativity.[13]
As outlined above, to be a European citizen means to be aware of different cultures whether
as individuals, groups or societies, and to know, respect and deal with their inherent specific
codes of conduct and manners. To achieve this objective, schools and universities can play
an important role in fostering common values and a sense of European belonging.[14] They
are a place to encourage learners to be proud of their own culture and respect and
appreciate other cultures at the same time. In this way, formal education helps to prepare
individuals to become contributing members of society.[15]
eTwinning projects are one way of making pupils aware of cultural differences and
similarities inside and outside the classroom, and to help them develop different views and
behaviour. Christiane Meisenburg, a teacher at the primary school Siegerland-Grundschule
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[12] Experiencing Strangeness. Meaning Perspectives in Encountering ‚Aliens’. Schäffter, O., in: Schmidt-Lauff, S. (Hrsg.):Adult Education and Lifelong Learning. Hamburg, Verlag Dr. Kovac (2003)
[13] Hossein Dadfar, Claes Moberg and Anders Törnvall “In search of cultural synergy in multicultural organizations”,Hossein Dadfar, Claes Moberg and Anders Törnvall, SIETAR Congress 1996, Verlag Wissenschaft und Praxis (1999)
[14] The histiory of the European Union, the European citizenship,http://www.historiasiglo20.org/europe/ciudadident.htm
[15] Ethnic monorities in Europe, http://www.khs.dk/eiem/problem.asp
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Berlin (Germany) comments on her eTwinning project “Come together: WorldCup 2006”:
“Working together with our European partners, the children develop a feeling for fairness.
Losing is different if they can identify with others. They register other countries as partners. And
the more we speak about this, the more they look at them and say: ’Well, these soccer players
are our friends.’ Moreover, they also start reflecting and understanding better their classmates
with different cultural origins.” [16]
A prerequisite for European cultural understanding and integration, as well as for developing
European citizenship, is to both acknowledge and manage European cultural diversity within
countries and between countries. Schools therefore face the challenge of both developing
appropriate pedagogical concepts and managing their openness towards Europe. How this
could be put into practice in schools will be described in the following section.
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[16] “Come together: World Cup 2006”, Project des Monats, Schulen ans Netz, Mai 2006,http://www.etwinning.de/en/pdm0506/index.php
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[18] COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES: Proposal for a RECOMMENDATION OF THE EUROPEANPARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL on key competencies for lifelong learning, Brussels, 10.11.2005
[19] Draft Manual for ELOSELOS Schools, European ELOSELOS Network, March 2006, © ELOSELOS Comenius 3 Network
3. European Competencies
“The project provides a very intensive and exciting exchange for pupils and challenges them to
present themselves and their surroundings to others. It is also an incentive to work
independently. The children get folders with the themes and received material so that their
parents can be involved in the project too.”
Monika Bilgeri, teacher at VS Zöblen (Austria)[17]
Cultural diversity is present in every aspect of our lives, and evident in many schools where
there will be a high percentage of pupils born or having roots in other nations. Therefore,
schools are an ideal place to develop and prepare young people for living and working in
a multicultural Europe and world.
In order to develop schools as catalysts for a growing European citizenship, cultural
understanding and integration, this topic needs to be part of the general education targets
and daily school life. The next task is then to decide which competencies should be
developed in schools in order to equip pupils with the skills necessary to live and work in
the new European Information Society.
According to the Lisbon Strategy, the following key competencies for lifelong learning have
been identified and provide a European Reference Framework: communication in the
mother tongue; communication in foreign languages (at least two); mathematical
competence and basic competencies in science and technology; digital competence;
learning to learn; interpersonal, intercultural and social competencies and civic competence;
entrepreneurship and cultural expression.[18]
The EIO (the European and international orientation of the ELOS initiative) is based on some
of these European key competencies and talks about ”Europe Competence”.[19] These key
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competencies comprise a basic knowledge of Europe and the European Union; the ability to
study and work in heterogeneous European groups, the ability to represent one’s own
culture among others in Europe and to be aware of the values and system of democracy as
a basis for responsible citizenship.
The implications for education are that young people should learn to:
• reflect in a critical way and express in spoken and written words their own viewpoints
on the process of European integration and its challenges as well as the process of
‘globalisation’, taking into account the place and role of international institutions; and
• participate in an international group within a European context in a field of study or work
and to give reliable information about one’s own culture, in relation to a European context.
These pedagogical objectives imply the three dimensions of knowledge, skills and attitude.
Based on the main European key competencies as defined by the EC and EIO, Figure 1 is an
attempt to define the main knowledge, skills and attitudes that schools may develop within
the scope of the eTwinning Action:
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Competencies
Basic knowledgeof Europe and theEuropean Union
Ability to studyand work inheterogeneousEuropean groups
Knowledge
• gain basic knowledge about Europeand the European Union: countries,institutions, targets, projects, etc.
• understand the codes of conduct andmanners generally accepted indifferent societies and environments
• understand basic communication rules• know the rules of project
management• know the rules of self-management
and team work, especially in virtualteams
Skills
• reflect on similarities anddifferences
• discover common roots
• plan projects responsibly• work together with other
pupils and European partnerschools (team work)
• develop intrapersonal,interpersonal andintercultural communicativeskills: expression andnegotiation in differentenvironments
Knowledge
• develop an interest inEuropean history andculture, political andsocial systems
• be open to differentopinions and changingperspectives
• understand interculturalwork as an enrichmentand potential for creatingsynergies
Figure 1: European competenciesthat may be developed
in the scope of theeTwinning Action
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Competencies Knowledge Skills Knowledge
Ability to representone’s own culturetowards others inEurope
Be aware of thevalues and system ofdemocracy as a basisfor responsiblecitizenship
Communication intwo other foreignlanguages
Digital competenceand use of ICT
• understand the codes ofconduct and mannersgenerally accepted in one’sown and different societiesand environments
• understand how nationalcultural identity interacts
• understand the concepts ofdemocracy, citizenship, civilrights, especially in thecontext of the EU
• have a working knowledge ofthe main vocabulary andfunctional grammar
• have a basic knowledge oflanguage sciences
• know the challenges andpossibilities of ICT in personal,social and work contexts
• know how to use ICT for one’sown expression andcollaborative networking
• reflect one’s own culture(surroundings at school andhome), especially within theEuropean context
• express this reflection in words,pictures, etc.
• try to solve problems affectinglocal or wider communities
• reflect critically and creativelyon political issues andparticipate actively
• understand spoken and writtenmessages
• initiate, sustain and concludeconversations
• read and understand texts
• search, collect, select andprocess information in a criticaland systematic way
• produce, present andunderstand complexinformation
• use ICT for creative andinnovative processes
• develop respect andopenness towards thediversity of culturalexpression
• develop fairness, respect,a sense of equality as wellas identification andacceptance of one-self andothers
• develop a positive attitudetowards communication
• appreciate culturaldifferences and diversity
• develop a critical andreflective attitude towardsall information
• use interactive mediaresponsibly
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To summarise, in addition to having some factual knowledge of Europe, cultural
understanding and integration requires the following main competencies:
• awareness and openness towards one’s own and other cultures;
• individual expression abilities for starting and sustaining a dialogue in regards to
- basic and intercultural communication,
- foreign languages, and
- use of ICT;
• management competencies (e.g., planning, self-management and team work) for
working together and creating sustainable cooperation.
Since all eTwinning projects have a European dimension, many eTwinning teachers already
incorporate these aspects into their eTwinning projects. The following pedagogical and
management approaches may help to reflect on important aspects of how these
competencies may be developed in daily school life.
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4. Teaching and Fostering CulturalUnderstanding and Integration
in eTwinning
Cultural understanding and integration involves dynamic interactions between people
and therefore requires real contact between them. Involving pupils directly through
active and experiential learning is a very efficient way to get to know and understand
other cultures. Consequently, for teaching cultural understanding to pupils, they
should be given opportunities to work as authentically as possible by using materials
such as newspapers, journals, books, films, radio, TV, etc., and communicate directly
with natives of the target culture.[20] European school partnerships such as eTwinning
offer an ideal vehicle for this activity.
Above all, learning has to start from the learner’s points of view and use their personal
experiences as a starting point.[21] In practice, it is valuable for them to learn from situations
where pupils make contact with people from other cultures: in schools, in everyday life,
when travelling, etc. Therefore, it is important to consider each student’s personal cultural
experiences and previous knowledge and to link them to the specific subject matter. In this
way, different cultural backgrounds and multiculturalism in schools are a resource everyone
can benefit and learn from. However, another prerequisite is that teachers have an interest
and considerable respect for the pupils they work with.[22]
When looking at the following aspects, it should be taken into account that all three
dimensions of knowledge, skill and attitude have to be developed, even if they are not
named explicitly.
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[20] Pachler, Dr. Norbert (1999); ebd.[21] Ethnic monorities in Europe, http://www.khs.dk/eiem/problem.asp[22] ibid.
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4.1 Creating awareness and openness
“I have not found any differences between the Norwegians and us. Perhaps there have been
small differences that one does not note at first glance since everybody has different
characteristics and ways to produce something individually. And this is what makes our
eTwinning project so special!!!”
Tomke Christina, 14-years-old pupil at Möörkenschule Leer (Germany)[23]
“As a teacher, this project may have given me the chance to address a phrase of Plato’s, who
said that educationshould ‘produce with the utmost ease and efficiency, a change in
orientation’. Yes, it is important to be able to change one’s way of seeing, including one’s way
of working and teaching! Taking the risk of innovation, opening up without prejudice to the
differences one could encounter in such a project: this is hardly the ‘easy’ choice! But a successful
partnership often gives the sense that together everything is easier.”
Michalewski Czeslaw, teacher at Lycée de Sèvres (France)[24]
Authentic learning contexts such as in eTwinning are ideal to create awareness through
reflection. Through direct exchanges with other European pupils, there is always a lot to
discover about aspects of other cultures.
As facilitators and coaches, eTwinning teachers are challenged to help pupils discover the
different elements of cultures, i.e., what people think (cognitive dimension), what people do
(behavioural dimension) and what they have (material dimension).[25]
The following steps are part of the cultural awareness process:
• Develop a sensibility for one’s own culture; reflect on one’s behaviour, cultural patterns,
interpretations, norms and values.
• Refer one’s own “system” to other cultural systems and identify similarities and differences.
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[23] Students have many languages, Projekt des Monats, Schulen ans Netz, April 2006,http://www.etwinning.de/praxis/pdm/pdm0406.php
[24] LEARNING WITH eTWINNING, Published in April 2006 by: Central Support Service for eTwinning, EuropeanSchoolnet, Rue de Trèves 61, B-1040 Brussels, Belgium
[25] Hossein Dadfar, Claes Moberg, Anders Törnvall, Linköping University, Sweden, „In search of cultural Synergy inMulticultural Organizations, SIETAR Congress, 1996, Verlag Wissenschaft und Praxis
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[26] Anti-Bias Education and Training, A WORLD OF DIFFERENCE®” Institute programs provide hands-on training tohelp children and adults challenge prejudice and discrimination and learn to live and work successfully and civilly inan increasingly diverse world, http://www.adl.org/education/edu_awod/default_awod.asp
[27] Pachler, Dr. Norbert (1999); ibid.
• Understand perspectives and views about how other people experience the world.
• Acknowledge one’s own and other cultures as possible systems.
• Recognise and use synergies, i. e., gain new perspectives and understanding of
one’s own experiences through understanding the perspective of others.
This reflection process allows pupils to think about their own behaviour, develop a certain
calmness regarding their own mistakes and weaknesses as well as to develop their own
learning processes for a peaceful and open togetherness. In teaching, teamwork, project
work, discussions and intercultural training methods[26] can be useful in this regard. Also,
learners’ diaries and other documentation such as videos or weblogs may be helpful to track
important aspects to help think about and discuss questions that might arise, thoughts,
different opinions, frustrations, etc. In such situations, the progress card included in the
eTwinning collaborative platform may be helpful.
When looking for similarities and differences, some experts suggest that it is best to focus on
similarities in order to create a “productive-integrative approach”.[27] Teachers encourage pupils to
identify suitable themes that eTwinning participants have in common, discuss them as a group in
the classroom and canvass individual student opinions, taking note of their emotions and
listening to their arguments. It is important to be conscious of the fundamental differences
between people within a nation or between different nations. This approach encourages pupils
to look for positive rather than negative elements, and then, through debate, to come to an
understanding and accept that people are different and to deal with this knowledge positively.
4.2 Developing individual expression abilities
By communicating with other cultures in a formal educational setting, pupils can start to
sustain an intercultural dialogue. eTwinning offers a huge playground for experiencing and
trying out individual means of expression in a supported and enjoyable way.
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4.2.1 Basic and intercultural communication
“The students have achieved a different sense of awareness concerning Europe by this project. The
fact that they communicate with students of another country has positive consequences in regard
to their interest in European countries and their economic, social and cultural situation. Presumably,
you can also get this knowledge in Geography lessons, but direct contact with people of another
European country is more motivating for the students than any other method. She is the best
collaborator that I could ever have found. We communicated almost three times a week, we had so
many things to discuss about the project - and not only. She is a person that I feel, I have known
for a long time. During the summer I’ll invited her in Patras in order to meet each other.”
Angeliki Ikonomopoulou, teacher at 8th LYCEUM of PATRAS (Greece)[28]
Intercultural communication skills find their expression in: developing a personal openness,
dialogue-oriented sensitivity and respect towards the diversity of others; competently
handling communication challenges such as speaking foreign languages; dealing with
stereotypes and the tendency to judge (different value systems); understanding non-verbal
signs (customs and habits); and preparing for unpredictable situations (stress). In addition,
as a means for dealing and communicating with cultures, Jan Hofstede suggests exploring
the following five dimensions of culture: Identity (individualist and collectivist); hierarchy
(large and small power distance); gender (feminine and masculine); truth (uncertainty
tolerance and avoidance); and virtue (short-term and long-term orientation).[29]
However, for communicating interculturally, basic communication skills are a prerequisite.
These skills are based on knowledge about communication processes and an understanding
of underlying processes and what appears to be best using trial and error.[30] Culture-specific
knowledge may be helpful for being prepared for unfamiliar situations and for starting
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[28] LEARNING WITH eTWINNING, Published in April 2006 by: Central Support Service for eTwinning, EuropeanSchoolnet, Rue de Trèves 61, B-1040 Brussels, Belgium
[29] Hofstede, Gert Jan (2002), Exploring culture: excercises, stories, and synthetic cultures, Intercultural Press Inc, USA[30] Roberta Wiig, School of Marketing, Oslo, Norway, “Teaching business students intercultural communications:
An experiment in skills acquisition, SIETAR Congress, 1996, Verlag Wissenschaft und Praxis
PAG_part_I_new 26.3.2007 14:31 Stránka 18
conversations, yet trial and error may really be the better learning strategy. As a result,
concrete learning situations such as an eTwinning project may be an ideal starting point to
test the hypotheses that pupils make, to analyse their actions and to develop and test new
hypotheses. Instead of just correcting mistakes, pupils should be placed in situations where
they recognise and examine their own underlying values and criteria upon which their
actions and their communication depend.
Furthermore, pupils have to: learn to deal with assumptions and how to test and correct
them; express opinions and share their thoughts and ideas with others; and ask questions
that express true interest in others’ views and the willingness to discuss one’s own views. In
this context, teachers need to prepare pupils for possible breakdown situations that might
occur within the eTwinning Action (e.g., if the partner school does not answer or stick to
deadlines agreed upon) in order to make these situations easier to handle.
4.2.2 Learning foreign languages
“In contrast to standard language lessons, we just learn along the way without having to listen
exhaustingly the whole time. When my partners just write and speak in French, I pick up and
learn many things automatically. This is very practical. ”
Mona, 14-years-old pupil at Brecht-Schulen Hamburg (Germany)[31]
Language is part of a culture as well as the medium by which a culture is defined and described.
This is why European politicians suggest that EU citizens should speak two foreign languages.[32]
Foreign languages are surely an important prerequisite for intercultural understanding. But, this
is not sufficient in itself. Apart from linguistic, pragmatic and strategic competence, learners
also need socio-cultural competencies and world knowledge. To become proficient target
language speakers, the learners need to be aware of the cultural dimension of language.[33]
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[31] “Échange entre les ports: Marseille – Hambourg”, Projekt des Monats, Schulen ans Netz, Juni 2006,http://www.etwinning.de/praxis/pdm/0606.php
[32] EurActiv, http://www.euractiv.com/de/kultur/figel-sprachenlernen-lehren-muessen-staerker-gefoerdert/article-149525
PAG_part_I_new 26.3.2007 14:31 Stránka 19
Therefore, in recent years it has been recognised how important it is to integrate the teaching
of modern foreign languages with the teaching of culture. Teaching culture has moved away
from teaching about culture (cognitive methods) to teaching learners how to interact with
cultures: pupils gain knowledge and understanding by exploring issues from different
perspectives and collecting authentic data by interacting personally with target language
speakers. The focus is not on “behaving correctly” when communicating with members of other
cultures but instead being able to deal with different situations and moderate attitudes, value-
systems and viewpoints of one’s own culture and those of the target group. In doing so, it is
more valuable to understand certain aspects of the target culture in depth rather than getting
a comprehensive knowledge. This concept is called the “intercultural communicative
approach”[34] and may also be transferred to a wide range of curricula and subject matter. Pupils
may thus gain “complete intercultural competence” by not just conceptual knowledge absorbing
but also by emotional adjustment and the ability to communicate and act in the real world.[35]
Culture-integrated learning may also occur in any subject as already proven in many eTwinning
projects. For example, when working on a certain subject or topic (e.g., environmental aspects),
pupils learn from each other’s cultures. It is a process that takes place automatically. Cultural
cooperation always implies sharing both knowledge as well as perception and insight.
4.2.3 Using ICT
“What still amazes me is the way the students very quickly took the eTwinning platform and
started to consider it as their own place. For many of the students it is a ‘virtual street corner’,
where they can hang out with their friends, have a chat, do exercises and read and write messages
at the same time. From an educator’s point of view, it is really fantastic. The students willingly
spend time in a completely English environment studying and learning English in their free time.”
Tiina Sarisalmi, teacher at Oriveden Keskuskoulu (Finland) [36]
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[34] ibid.[35] Roberta Wiig, School of Marketing, Oslo, Norway, “Teaching business students intercultural communications: An
experiment in skills acquisition, SIETAR Congress, 1996, Verlag Wissenschaft und Praxis[36] LEARNING WITH eTWINNING, Published in April 2006 by: Central Support Service for eTwinning, European
Schoolnet, Rue de Trèves 61, B-1040 Brussels, Belgium
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“The exchange between the schools is working very well. Tthe children participate actively and work
on the computer on their own. The outcome is a booklet about: my school, my town, my country,
my family; using drawings, paintings and others topics. The potential of the computer as a learning
tool is fully used – pupils can get familiar with the tool without reading and writing skills.”
Claudia Gartler, teacher at Kindergarten Soeding (Austria)[37]
The eTwinning platform (known as the “TwinSpace”) offers teachers and learners the
possibility to exchange documents, pictures, opinions, music, etc., and to work on the same
tasks and projects, even if they are miles apart from each other. By working together through
ICT, pupils can improve their ICT skills in real situations and, at the same time, discover
cultural differences and similarities along the way. The exchange of technical and especially
of personal information helps pupils to better understand their own way of thinking and that
of other cultures or people, and to recognise that their own and others’ values are behind
their reactions. ICT allows for continuity, which is very important since intercultural
proficiency is a process and cannot be learnt just by meeting once or twice.
Children especially profit from ICT use since they rarely travel abroad frequently so do not
have the opportunity for direct contact with other cultures. Therefore, ICT allows for the
development of European understanding and integration at a very early age.
Of course, ICT does not replace direct contact between cultures. Elements of face-to-face
communication are important to build up a certain familiarity between different cultures
albeit via the Internet. Technologies that provide for videos, podcasting or chatting are
helpful for making the exchange more personal and lively and can be a better substitute for
real face-to-face contact than text alone.
Moreover, ICT can enhance foreign language skills. This was discovered in the Cross Cultural
Business Communication project (CCBC)[38] where pupils worked in virtual companies and
their teachers acted as facilitators but did not correct any mistakes. Consequently, the pupils’
writing skills improved rapidly because they wanted to make themselves understood. The
same holds true for eTwinning pupils interacting at eye level; ICT can help in all language
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PEDAGOGICAL ADVISORY GROUP
[37] ibid.[38] The Cros-Cultural Businsess Communication Project or exploiting ICT to facilitate ICC,
http://www.immi.se/intercultural/nr9/cebron.htm
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dimensions from practicing and developing reading skills, using web-based language
learning materials, writing skills through blogging, emails and document writing as well as
listening and speaking skills through the use of audio files, such as podcasts or videos.
However, communication on the Internet appears to be another intercultural challenge.
Between cultures, there seem to be rules that differ when communicating online: etiquette,
interaction styles (e.g, greetings or farewells), response speed expectations, work ethics, etc.
When people learn together online, they may also develop their own culture maintained by
guidelines, facilitators and participants.[39]
In analysing content in postings, the “Intercultural Challenges in Networked Learning”
project[40] found that there are so-called “specific online cultures” and that the following
aspects might differ individually and also culturally:
• email versus web-based communication
• issues to discuss face-to-face versus online
• openness towards presenting one’s own identity
• technical issues (frustration versus expertise)
• expectations of the learning environment
• tolerance of communication styles (formal/informal, academic/story style, critical debate)
• explicit or implicit expectations about time and punctuality
It is important to consider and discuss these aspects with your communication partner and to
find certain rules and agreements for an efficient intercultural online communication based on
confidentiality, openness and respectfulness. In this context, it is also advisable for both
teachers and pupils to familiarise themselves with the basic rules of netiquette. There are many
websites and online tests and interactive activities that can be used. Figure 2 contains the basic
rules from the Microsoft webpage for New Zealand[41] which makes for a good starting point.
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PEDAGOGICAL ADVISORY GROUP
[39] Chase, Macfadyen, Reeder and Roche :Intercultural Challenges in Networked Learning: Hard Technologies MeetSoft Skills , First Monday, volume 7, number 8 (August 2002), URL:http://firstmonday.org/issues/issue7_8/chase/index.html
[40] ibid.[41] http://www.microsoft.com/nz/athome/security/online/netiquette.mspx
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The above-mentioned aspects have to be taken into account when working together in an
intercultural setting using ICT. Teachers and pupils should be prepared for the human and
technical obstacles that can occur in ICT communications and find ways to overcome them
together.
Common learning environments such as the TwinSpace for eTwinning for working
interculturally are ideal for exchanging and sharing material and working on the same project
independent of place and time. This is important since class and holiday schedules differ
between different cultures. Sharing the same working space gives a feeling of unity and
makes common work possible whenever it is wanted.
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Figure 2: Possible guidelines for a good netiquette.Microsoft
Guidelines for good netiquette:
• Apply the golden rule: Treat others the way you would like to be treated
• Remember there is a person on the other end of your message
• Know where you are and use appropriate good behavior
• Forgive other people's mistakes, especially newcomers
• Always remain calm, especially if someone insults you (or you think they have)
• Avoid using ALL CAPS to emphasize—some users see this a way to “yell”
• Don’t use inappropriate or offensive language
• Use your online name or nickname consistently and sign all messages with it (but protect your real
identity by never using your full name)
• Don't send or forward junk e-mail (commonly referred to as spam).
• Stay out of continual, emotional arguments or "flame wars"
• Check your spelling, be concise, and keep messages short
• When you participate in chat rooms, don’t interrupt others and stay on topic.
• Follow the same rules of good behavior that you would in real life.
• Use emoticons to help communicate humor and sarcasm, and learn the common online acronyms.
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[42] Students have many languages, Projekt des Monats, Schulen ans Netz, April 2006,http://www.etwinning.de/praxis/pdm/pdm0406.php
[43] Dadfar, Moberg, Törnvall, Linköping University, Sweden, „In search of cultural Synergy in MulticulturalOrganizations, SIETAR Congress, 1996, Verlag Wissenschaft und Praxis
[44] ibid.
4.3 Developing thelearner’s management competencies
“I liked our eTwinning project since we could realise our individual ideas and the teachers only
assisted us when needed. It was thrilling to work on a common project together with pupils
from other countries. Learning with eTwinning was different than standard lessons... it was
something special.” Jens, 13-years-old pupil at “Möörkenschule Leer (Germany)[42]
Intercultural project work and the production of common results in the form of websites,
weblogs, online magazines, PowerPoint presentations, etc., is an ideal field for developing
pupils’ organisational skills and preparing them for life and work.
Projects, in general, are conceived as a socio-technical system.[43] The technical side
comprises clear objectives, tasks, schedules, resources, etc. The social side refers to social
aspects such as empathy, communication skills and the ability to solve conflicts. These are
all basic competencies that are needed for working together interculturally and creating
intercultural synergies.
Synergy is characterised by dynamic processes, two or more opposing views, empathy and
sensitivity, adapting and learning, a goal of creating an integrated solution and a true
understanding of the others, their organisation and their culture. By recognising similarities
and differences, both cultures may profit from these aspects and create synergies. This
means that cultural synergy is no compromise but implies ideas, aspects and results of joint
actions of discrete working teams that produce in sum a larger effect than if they acted
independently.[44]
PEDAGOGICAL ADVISORY GROUP
PAG_part_I_new 26.3.2007 14:31 Stránka 24
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PEDAGOGICAL ADVISORY GROUP
5. Managing Intercultural Understandingand Integration in eTwinning Schools
Schools that have signed up to the eTwinning Action have made a type of tacit agreement
to promote cultural interactions on a European level. However, in order to best profit from
the eTwinning Action and make it a real European initiative, it is advisable to make European
citizenship an active part of the school policy in order to foster cultural understanding inside
and outside the school and integrate minorities. As defined above, ‘European citizenship’ is
understood “[...] in addition to citizenship of an individual state”.[45]
The following aspects seem to be of interest:
• School strategy and philosophy
• School organisation and curriculum
• Multilingualism and language learning
• Professional development of teachers
eTwinning can be a driver for putting these aspects into practice and to support continuous
development. In addition, eTwinning offers schools an easy starting point without the need
for significant financial investment to implementing a school culture for a European way of
thinking.
eTwinning schools might learn from the further approach ELOS schools make: they include
the reality of European integration and international relations in their school curriculum and
programmes. According to the ‘European and International Orientation’ (EIO) strategy,
ELOS schools use Europe as a ‘learning environment’ at school and integrate related
content, pedagogical methods, training and other activities in their whole school life. Thus,
they offer their pupils a high-quality European and international education.
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5.1 School strategy and philosophy
“[...] It is important to keep the project very pupil centered. We would like to see pupils who
are creating European Classrooms/Colourful Classrooms together in the atmosphere of
cooperation and worldwide peace […]."
Pujo Vainio at Liceo Lammi (Finland)[46]
Schools have to be places of tolerance, cooperation and open communication; places where
conflicts are dealt with openly and where being different is possible without feeling
threatened. Differences need to be seen as a chance for change, synergy and fruitful growth.
A school that lives and fosters cultural learning and understanding is open-minded and tolerant
both within and outside the school. Therefore, this kind of philosophy can be seen and felt: it
finds its expression in the schools’ organisation, in its ways of communication, in its teachers’
professionalism, in its pedagogical approaches as well as in its engagements and activities.
It is important that school managers live this philosophy and implement it in their
programmes for everyday school life. Such a vision will form the basis for intercultural
understanding.
Guidelines for teachers may be helpful as steps towards an intercultural school. Examples
may be found in school development concepts integrating cultural aspects of minorities such
as those used in Roma communities[47] and also under a broader perspective in UNESCO,
European schools, Comenius, ELOS and also eTwinning schools.
5.2 School organisation and curriculum
“Our whole school has been a part of the project, older students have helped to prepare short
stories about the children who are communicating with each other, have given the younger ones
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[46] LEARNING WITH eTWINNING, Published in April 2006 by: Central Support Service for eTwinning, EuropeanSchoolnet, Rue de Trèves 61, B-1040 Brussels, Belgium
[47] Central Educatia 2000, SCHOOL DEVELOPMENT IN ROMA COMMUNITIES, TEACHERS GUIDES, EDITED 2000-2001, www.see-educoop.net/education_in/pdf/school_development-rom-enl-t06.pdf
PAG_part_I_new 26.3.2007 14:31 Stránka 26
a hand while using the internet and putting up the necessary information. (...)” Laine Aluoja,
teacher at Tyri Gymnaasium (Estonia) [48]
The importance given to cultural understanding and integration in schools becomes evident
by looking at its organisation and the space given to develop both teachers’ and pupils’
attitudes towards diversity and to manage and share cultural knowledge. Within the school,
learning communities between different nationalities may be helpful. Outside the school,
cooperating with parents with different cultural backgrounds, with international
organisations and companies and especially school partnerships allow for authentic learning
opportunities with all kinds of nations.
Pedagogically, it is important that the school management team provides intercultural
learning environments such as through eTwinning school partnership. Possibilities for
interdisciplinary work are also necessary so that teachers and pupils can deal with diverse
“European” topics from different perspectives. In some cases this additionally requires close
cooperation between subject teachers.[49]
In developing “European competencies”, the curriculum may include appropriate targets
and pedagogical approaches as described above.
Furthermore, special programmes for integrating minorities are helpful. For example, some
schools in Germany offer Islam and Turkish language courses in order to give Muslim and
Turkish children the chance to reflect, understand and integrate their native or parents’
culture into their German one. At the same time, children have to pass a German language
test before entering school and they are offered pre-school German language courses, so
that they become acquainted with their current new home culture. Ideally, their parents are
also included in these programmes so that pupils learn to live and integrate both cultures in
school and at home.
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[48] LEARNING WITH eTWINNING, Published in April 2006 by: Central Support Service for eTwinning, EuropeanSchoolnet, Rue de Trèves 61, B-1040 Brussels, Belgium
[49] ibid.
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Ideally, different levels of cultural learning are interlinked. One interesting example comes
from Australia. There, the “Diversity Works!” programme[50] proposes pathways for different
education levels and links them to each other. The scheme
used in this programme could be adapted for schools
integrating eTwinning in their curriculum as shown in
figure 3.
In this context, the development of portfolios and
questionnaires for each level may be helpful in order to
assess the pupils’ intercultural or “European”
competencies.
5.3 Multilingualism and languagelearning
„In the exchange with our European partners, our pupils are
learning the foreign language in a natural way.“
Kai-Uwe Goesicke, teacher at Klingenberg-Oberschule
(Berlin)[51]
As stated earlier, according to the Lisbon Strategy, the learning of one Lingua Franca alone
is not enough. “Every European citizen should have meaningful communicative competence
in at least two other languages in addition to his or her mother tongue.” [52] National curricula
should emphasise the necessity of learning more than one foreign language.
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PEDAGOGICAL ADVISORY GROUP
[50] DiversityWorks!, Managing Cultural Diversity, A Guide to Resources for Educators and Managers Working inEducation, Commonwealth of Australia 2005, http://www.diversityaustralia.gov.au/educate/index.htm
[51] eTwinning: Praxishandbuch für Lehrkräfte, Europäische Schulpartnerschaften über das Internet; Schulen ans Netz, 2.Auflage April 2006
[52] Commission of the European Communities; Promoting Language Learning and Linguistic Diversity. An Action Plan2004-2006, p. 3
Figure 3: Possible linkages between
cultural learning ondifferent levels of education
Higher Secondary LevelHigh awareness
Producing common productsSolving problemsCreating synergies
Lower Secondary LevelFuther awareness
Collaboration
Kindergarten/Primary Schools
General awarenessFirst contacts
PAG_part_I_new 26.3.2007 14:31 Stránka 28
As Dr. Ursula Esser, an expert on language learning and policy, phrased it: “The attractiveness
of Europe as a cultural region relies also in its diversity of languages with the wide field of
different literatures. That is why linguistic competence helps to understand foreign cultures and
traditions. Languages which sound strange raise the feeling of alienation. To understand
a foreign language means to feel comfortable with the linguistic community and to get more
easily familiar with the specific culture. Linguistic understanding improves the tolerance of other
cultures: things I understand, I accept more easily.”[53]
As far as schools can make their own choices in this respect, they should also support the
study of more than one foreign language. Additionally, to develop a European understanding
and efficient collaboration, it is also necessary for schools to offer more European languages
than just English, French, German or Spanish. Currently, most neighbouring countries that
speak minority languages do not seem to have a strategy for learning each others’ languages.
5.4 Professional development of teachers
“As a teacher, I enjoy this ‘open end’ within eTwinning, the unit that I cannot plan in every
detail. To develop a project is thrilling and makes me a fellow-learner.”
Solveig Wiegand, teacher at Georg-August-Zinn Schule (Germany)[54]
“The success of the project can be traced back to the fact that the involved colleagues reached
a productive cooperation very fast, got along with one another very well and pursued the same
aims. Flexibility, creativity and spontaneity are important requirements for a successful cooperation
of such a distance. It is a wonderful experience if you get to know people of a foreign country by
internet and friendships develop after a while. I would like to share the experience that foreigners
turn into friends with many teachers and students all over Europe!”
Martina Vinjarova, Súkromné gymnázium Presov (Slovakia)[55]
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PEDAGOGICAL ADVISORY GROUP
[53] Dr. Ursula Esser, in an interview by kommweit – kommunikation und weiterbildung, 8/2006, www.kommweit.de[54] eTwinning: Praxishandbuch für Lehrkräfte, Europäische Schulpartnerschaften über das Internet; Schulen ans Netz,
2. Auflage April 2006[55] LEARNING WITH eTWINNING, Published in April 2006 by: Central Support Service for eTwinning, European
Schoolnet, Rue de Trèves 61, B-1040 Brussels, Belgium
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Teachers have the task to create a learning environment that stimulates thier pupils’ personal
development and social skills within the cultural understanding and integration process. First,
teachers need to acquire the exact competencies they want to cultivate in their pupils, i.e.,
personal and social skills such as tolerance and respect, self-esteem, flexibility, creativity and
the ability to improvise and react in unpredictable situations.[56] Additionally, teachers need
basic communication and ICT skills as well as sensitivity in dealing with intercultural
differences in order to stimulate the intercultural awareness process in young people.
Therefore, it is necessary to prepare pre- and in-service teachers for this task and to enable
them to implement cultural learning appropriate to the pupils’ level.[57] As for pupils, eTwinning
also offers teachers an authentic learning environment and a vast field where they can
experiment and learn just by doing them: communicating, using ICT and project management.
Practically, for pre-service teachers studying team-building activities, personal communication
skills and foreign languages may be incorporated into educational programmes. For in-service
teachers, individual training in several small blocks and over a certain period of time may be
helpful to develop the teachers’ awareness about the importance of cultural understanding and
their own basic and cultural communication competencies. There needs to be more focus on the
teachers’ and their various roles as facilitators, catalysts, coaches, partners, reflective observers
and problem solvers who support their pupils in their individual and common experiences.
In everyday routine, teachers may exchange their own experiences in cultural working
groups and work together on pedagogical models for the cultural understanding process
within and outside their schools. It might make sense to also integrate pupils from ethnic
minorities and to discuss topics of interest with them to gain different perspectives. For
greater understanding and awareness, they might also engage in discussions with parents,
emigrants, cultural experts and employees from international companies. Discussion with
people from “the outside” can be very enriching for widening teachers’ and pupils’ horizons.
For further approaches concerning the teachers’ professional development within eTwinning
please refer to the respective chapter in this book.
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PEDAGOGICAL ADVISORY GROUP
[56] Ethnic minorities in Europe – Teacher and counsellor qualifications, http://www.khs.dk/eiem/qualifications.asp[57] DiversityWorks!, ibid.
PAG_part_I_new 26.3.2007 14:31 Stránka 30
6. Conclusions
“Our children had tremendous fun throughout the process contributing to their love of learning and
passion to extend and deepen their knowledge and understanding. Our pupils had the opportunity
to examine generational prejudices arising from the extreme shared experiences being recounted to
them. Class discussion of the issues raised allowed our pupils to put these in a historical perspective
and develop positive understanding and experience of our European partners. As a school we have
benefited greatly through this enriching experience and of having established genuine partnerships
with fellow European professionals. A shared resource from both partners of this European
initiative is available to all and will stand as an ongoing legacy of this project.”
George Glass, teacher at Cauldeen Primary School (United Kingdom)[58]
What can eTwinning contribute to the cultural understanding and integration process?
First of all, compared to other European projects, eTwinning is unique in the sense that it is
a very open and flexible action and offers an easy entry point for schools to take part in
intercultural development: the online application is relatively easy, every kind of school is
accepted and initial projects may be very simple. The most important thing is to start the
dialogue and, in the course of the eTwinning project, schools, teachers and pupils will gather
more experience of intercultural collaboration and develop respective competencies to
further develop their projects. Thus, it gives schools and educators an easy way to open their
doors towards Europe and for starting or further developing European school partnerships
all across Europe. In addition, eTwinning is also open to kindergarten and pre-schools and
may help develop intercultural understanding and integration at a very early age.
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[58] LEARNING WITH eTWINNING, Published in April 2006 by: Central Support Service for eTwinning, EuropeanSchoolnet, Rue de Trèves 61, B-1040 Brussels, Belgium
PAG_part_I_new 26.3.2007 14:31 Stránka 31
Secondly, it helps to develop sustainable partnerships and authentic and continuous learning
situations. By providing the appropriate conditions such as the TwinSpace, an easy-to-use
collaborative learning environment shared between the school partners, schools can learn
from and with each other every day. In this way authentic intercultural learning in schools
becomes possible and pupils get first-hand cultural knowledge and gain profound
intercultural experiences. Using the eTwinning tools allows a continuous intercultural
exchange and this in turn, allows a continuous development of cultural awareness and
cultural competencies on all levels of education.
Moreover, eTwinning helps make pupils aware of the fact that cultural diversity already exists
in their own classroom, and that it is necessary to be respectful and tolerant towards each
other. eTwinning teachers also report that children and young people with weak social roots
profit from eTwinning in the sense that they travel “virtually” to other countries, get to know
foreign cultures and even get into very personal contact through e-mails or video
conferencing. In this respect, eTwinning helps to integrate all kinds of age groups
independent of their social status or their ethnic backgrounds.
By talking to each other at eye level, pupils overcome fears of making mistakes since the
audience “at the other end of the line” is of the same age and, in general, they also have
similar interests. Also the use of media increases their motivation. Thus eTwinning can even
enhance learning effects, especially when when learning languages.
In the search for a European culture, eTwinning is an ideal intercultural setting and a fruitful
channel for teachers and pupils alike that allows them to develop main “European
competencies” of awareness and openness, communication and management knowledge,
skills and attitudes in a motivating and enjoyable way. eTwinning has the power to help in
bridging possible mental frontiers existing in Europe at an early education level and with real
authenticity thus lessening the distance between nations as well as between different
cultures within nations.
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PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
www.etwinning.net
February 2007
PEDAGOGICAL ADVISORY GROUP
REFLECTIONS ON eTWINNING
PAG_part_I_new 26.3.2007 14:31 Stránka 33
Cultural understanding and Integration . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Professional Development . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
Table of contents
1. INTRODUCTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
2. PERSONAL PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
2.1 Degrees of involvement towards innovation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
2.2 ICT competences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
2.3 Learning styles of teachers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
2.4 Views on education . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
2.5 Personal professional development in eTwinning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
2.6 Working on personal professional development . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
2.7 Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
3. PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT ON SCHOOL LEVEL:
THE SCHOOL AS A LEARNING ORGANISATION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
3.1 School improvement and ICT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
3.2 School improvement and international collaboration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
3.3 An integrated view of school improvement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
3.3.1 Leadership and coordination . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58
3.3.2 Standards and targets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
3.3.3 Monitoring and assessment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
3.3.4 Classroom teaching programme . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
3.3.5 Professional learning teams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
3.3.6 School and class organisation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
3.3.7 Intervention and special assistance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
3.3.8 Home, school and community partnership . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
3.4 Stages in school improvement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
3.5 Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
3.6 Appendix . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
PEDAGOGICAL ADVISORY GROUP
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PEDAGOGICAL ADVISORY GROUP
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1. Introduction
Professional development of teachers is an ongoing process of lifelong learning,
training, acquiring skills, improving competence and reaching maturity and wisdom in
the teaching profession. One of the implicit effects of joining a project like eTwinning
is that participating teachers do learn: they gain new insights into different
educational environments, new ways of teaching and learning, new pedagogical
approaches, and by collaborating with teachers from other countries they reflect on
their own views, competencies and skills through the eyes of different cultures. So they
really develop themselves in their profession. We call that professional development!
In this paper, the Pedagogical Advisory Group (PAG) of eTwinning aims to address
professional development in the innovative and international setting of eTwinning from two
perspectives.
The first perspective is the personal level, the level of the individual teacher. Most of the
time teachers are busy with the day to day business of education: teaching children, creating
a pleasant pedagogical climate, exploring the best ways to teach and thinking about the best
learning environment for their target group. This does not leave much room for personal
reflection on the impact of their work on their profession and on their own personal
development as a teacher. We explicitly want to address this aspect of personal reflection
on professional development within eTwinning. This includes teachers’ reflections on their
learning styles, their competencies, involvement and ambitions. From this perspective, we
will also look at the different ways professional development in the European countries
taking part in the eTwinning action has been organised.
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Authors:
Pieter Hogenbirk
Márta Hunya
Co-authors:
Conor Galvin
Anne Gilleran
Michelle Selinger
Bettina Zeidler
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The second perspective involves approaching the school as a learning organisation. By
participating in eTwinning projects schools can create a learning environment not only for
their pupils but also for their teachers. Joining in with eTwinning action can be part of
a policy for professional development of the teachers involved, as well as a whole school
policy for the school as a learning community. This section will include certain elements of
whole school improvement within the framework of an ICT supported international
collaboration, and consider the whole school approach through integration of authentic and
meaningful use of ICT. We will address themes like leadership, standards and assessment,
classroom teaching and organisation and the school within the local and international
community.
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2. Personal professional development
For individual teachers joining an innovative project such as eTwinning, there are a number
of distinguishing characteristics which determine the extent to which teachers are really
experiencing professional development. Undoubtedly there is professional growth when
participating in a collaborative project like eTwinning. Being aware of this is a question of
reflection and self-awareness. Here we will elaborate on some important characteristics. If
teachers are more familiar with those characteristics, they will readily be able to recognise
elements of their own development and growth. We will discuss degrees of involvement in
innovation, ICT-competencies and learning styles.
2.1 Degrees of involvement towards innovation
In 1977 Hall, Louckes & Rutherford introduced the Concerns-Based Adoption Model (CBAM)[1].
This model defines seven stages of involvement of teachers in innovative practices. The model
can easily be applied to all kinds of innovative practices, for example the use of ICT or bringing
the European dimension into the classroom. The model is very often interpreted by researchers
and teacher educators in different ways, but the roots are always quite recognisable.
Hord et al. defined practical expressions of concern and defined behavioural indicators in which
one may recognise the stage of concern a person is on.[2] Collis and de Vries applied CBAM to the
use of ICT in education and simplified the model into five stages of concern. The zero-stage is for
people who are not interested. The highest two stages are easy to combine. This model was used
for example in the national Projects on Information Technology (PIT or ‘Schools with Spirit’) in
the Netherlands in order to measure the progress made by collaborative networks of teachers.[3]
[1] Hall, Louckes & Rutherford, Measuring Stages of Concern about the Innovation, Texas University, Austin, Researchand Development Center for teacher Education, 1977
[2] Hord, Rutherford Huling-Austin, and Hall Taking Charge of Change, 1987. Published by the Association forSupervision and Curriculum Development (703) 549-9110
[3] Hogenbirk Pieter, Schools with Spirit - Capacity building in the Netherlands, Capacity Building for IT in Education indeveloping Countries, ed. Gail Marshall and Mikko Ruohonen, Chapman and Hall, 1998
PAG_part_II_new 27.3.2007 12:04 Stránka 39
With the wide range of activities in the PIT-Schools, the CBAM model was chosen to study
the degree to which the participating teachers moved to higher levels of involvement during
the project. It appeared that these teachers moved from a level of 1.96 at the beginning to
a level of 2.74 after two years.
We follow Collis and de Vries’ simplification of the CBAM model to define five descriptions
of behaviour and expressions in which teachers can recognise themselves in every innovative
process they are involved in.
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Figure 1: Simplification
of the CBAM model
Stage 1: Orientation, informationalTeachers have a general interest in the innovation. They take the initiative to learn more about the innovation.
"I would like to know more about it." "Should I know something about this?"
Stage 2: Preparation, personalTeachers want to learn about the personal ramifications of the innovation. They have definite plans to start using the
innovation. "How will using it affect me?" "How does this work?" "Can I figure it out and handle it?"
Stage 3: Management, mechanicalTeachers learn the processes and tasks of the innovation. They focus on information and resources. They are
making changes to better organise the use of the innovation.
"I seem to be spending all my time getting materials ready." "Is there a manageable way I can use these in practice?"
Stage 4: Consequences, routine and refinementTeachers focus on the innovation's impact on pupils. They are making few or no changes anymore and
have an established pattern of use or they make changes to increase outcomes. "How is my use affecting
learners? How can I refine it to have more impact?" "How can I make this part of my day-to-day practice?"
Stage 5/6: Collaboration, integration, refocusing and leadershipTeachers cooperate with other teachers in implementing the innovation. They consider the
benefits of the innovation and think of additional alternatives that might work even better.
"How can I relate what I am doing to what others are doing?" and "I have some ideas about
something that would work even better." "How might I stimulate my colleagues to see the
educational potential of this?"
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Now we apply this five stage model and their descriptions to innovation where teachers are
working collaboratively in international educational projects. We can specify types of action
or behaviour within a project like eTwinning (see figure 2).
If teachers who want to participate in an international collaborative project have an
estimated idea of their stage of concern, it is easier for them to judge beforehand if some
project idea or another teacher would be a suitable match. If they are already in the process
of a collaborative project they can use the model to discover the cause of problems they
encounter, and find ways to solve them.
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Stage of concern
Stage 1: Orientation, informational
Stage 2: Preparation, personal
Stage 3: Management, mechanical
Stage 4: Consequences, routine
and refinement
Stage 5/6: Collaboration, integration,
refocusing and leadership
Action towards international projects and collaboration
Is interested in international collaboration but still has some difficulties
in getting over the threshold.
Has interest in international projects and is ready to participate in such
a project.
Has had one experience in international collaboration and wants to
explore and investigate other possibilities.
Has been involved in some international projects and is working on
integrating it in daily practice.
Is regularly involved in international collaborative projects and
stimulates and supports colleagues to do the same.
Figure 2: Stages of Concern for InternationalCollaboration
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However, it is important to note that in the categorisation of innovative stages, the
complexity of professional development within eTwinning means that there are at least four
types of innovations involved. An eTwinning project involves:
• international collaboration;
• using ICT as an educational tool;
• innovation in the curriculum since it does not fit easily into the standard objectives of
the course;
• new ways of working with pupils, giving them more responsibility and autonomy as
regards their learning.
2.2 ICT competences
An important aspect of the success of eTwinning projects is matching ICT competencies of
the teachers involved in the twinning schools. Between September 2004 and July 2005, the
European UTeacher project worked on a common European framework for ICT
competences that could be expected of teachers.[4] In this framework, teachers interact at
four levels: with themselves, pupils, fellow teachers and the environment.
These interactions were found to take place with regard to eight sectors that are related to
ICT: pedagogy, curriculum/subject matter, professional development, organisation,
policy/strategies, ethics, innovation and, finally, technical aspects. The table is shown below
in full (figure 3).
The competencies described in these cells outline a trajectory for ICT development of
teachers. Furthermore, it is clear that some of the aspects in the cells can be particularly
addressed by eTwinning projects - these cells are highlighted in yellow. They mostly concern
the intrapersonal interaction of the teacher and their interaction with the environment.
Within the scope of this paper the competencies within the sector of professional
development and innovation are also important.
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[4] UTeacher, seminar, Venice, 4-9 October 2004 and workshop, Palermo, 9-10 March 2005; V. Midoro (ed.),A Common European Framework for Teachers’ Professional Profile in ICT and Education, Ortona, Italy, June 2005.http://ulearn.itd.ge.cnr.it/uteacher
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Figure 3: A CommonEuropeanFrameworkfor Teachers’ProfessionalProfile in ICTand Education
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Interaction with
SECTORS
PEDAGOGY
CURRICULUM/SUBJECT MATTER
PROFESSIONALDEVELOPMENT
ORGANISATION
POLICIES,STRATEGIES
SELFcontinuous personalconstruction ofprofessional identity
Becoming aware of theconstant impact of ICT onlearning, school andsociety, and constructinga personal vision/philosophy of learningand pedagogy suitable fora knowledge society
Given the rapid growth inknowledge, reflecting onthe key areas and topicsto address within the sub-ject area; understandingthe impact of ICT on thedidactics of the discipline
Becoming aware of theincreasing need for con-tinuous professionaldevelopment and themeans to achieve it
Constructing a personalvision of school organisa-tion that responds to thedemands and challengesof the knowledge society
Critically reflecting onpolicies and strategiespertaining to the school-ICT-knowledge societyrelationship and con-structing one’s personalvision
PUPILSFacilitation of pupils’learning and development
Developing andmanaging learningenvironments consonantboth with one’s personalvision of learning /pedagogy and with thedemands and challengesof the knowledge society
Designing and managinglearning environmentswhich take into accountthe opportunities andlimits of ICT in thedidactics of a givensubject area
Planning and takingactions to develop one’sprofessionalism regardingthe education andwelfare of pupils
Within the limits ofcontext constrains,implementing anorganisation of theschool/classroom thatresponds to the demandsand challenges of theknowledge society
Given context constrainsand policy/strategyrequirements,implementing actionsthat respond to thedemands and challengesof the knowledge society
COLLEAGUESCooperation at school leveland within teachers’ community of practice
Sharing practice,repertoire, andlearning/pedagogy visions.Collaborating ininterdisciplinaryeducational activities.
Sharing practice,repertoire, and "knowhow" in uses of ICT in thesubject area, both withcolleagues and inside theteaching community
Learning to fully exploitICT to cooperate withcolleagues and theteaching community
Sharing practice,repertoire, andorganisational visions andcooperating withcolleagues on classroomand school organisation
Critically reflecting withcolleagues on policies andstrategies pertaining to theimpact of ICT on theschool system andcooperating to implementthem
ENVIRONMENTinteraction with the external environment
Considering and usingthe local and globalenvironment asa resource and as anarena for school andlearning
Using local and globalresources to fosterlearning in a givensubject area
Identifying and exploitingthe opportunities offeredby the local and globalenvironment to developone’s professionalism
Contributing to builda school organisationlinked to the local andglobal environment
Given the limits of one’s action,contributing to thedevelopment of policiesand strategies related to the construction ofa school strictly linked to the environment
PAG_part_II_new 27.3.2007 12:04 Stránka 43
[5] See, for example: Tymms P., Brain Research, Learning Style Research and the New ICTs: Partners in the LearningRevolution, University of Durham, United Kingdom, 2002.
2.3 Learning styles of teachers
Another important issue within the context of professional development on a personal level
is the learning style of the teachers involved. In the literature very little is mentioned about
the connection between teachers’ learning styles and the manner in which they pursue their
professional development, although there is considerable research on the relationship
between teachers’ learning styles and the learning styles of the pupils they are teaching.[5] It
often appears that teachers choose their way of teaching more according to their own
learning style and less dependent of the learning styles of the students.
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Interaction with
SECTORS
ETHICS
INNOVATION
TECHNICALASPECTS
SELFcontinuous personalconstruction ofprofessional identity
Making one’s primeresponsibility the educa-tion and welfare of allthe pupils in one’s care
Becoming aware that theschool system needs tochange in order to fulfilthe needs of a knowl-edge society, and beingwilling to contribute tothat innovation
Constantly pursuingtechnical and cognitiveproficiency
PUPILSFacilitation of pupils’learning and development
Gearing one's practice tothe principle that theeducation and welfare ofall the pupils in one’scare is one’s primeresponsibility
Shifting the emphasisfrom teaching tolearning, promotinglearner-centredenvironments
Fully exploiting ICT tofacilitate pupils’ learning
COLLEAGUESCooperation at school leveland within teachers’ community of practice
Manifesting a positive andactive role in cooperatingwith colleagues andinteracting inside teachers’communities of practice
Critically reflecting withcolleagues on schoolinnovation and cooperatingwith them in disseminatinginnovation
Fully exploiting ICTcapabilities to interact withcolleagues and teachers’communities of practice
ENVIRONMENTinteraction with the external environment
Recognisingresponsibility to preparecitizens able to live inharmony with the socialand physicalenvironment
Implementing actionsaimed at buildinga school strictly linked tothe local and globalenvironment
Fully exploiting ICT tocreate learning networks,bringing added value toschool and society(locally and globally)
Figure 3: A Common European
Framework for Teachers’Professional Profile in ICT
and Education
PAG_part_II_new 27.3.2007 12:04 Stránka 44
In a project on describing professional development of teachers the Dutch Inspectorate
elaborated on the personal learning styles of the portrayed teachers.[6] In that project it was
decided to use Kolb’s learning styles. The Kolb classification is more or less undisputed in its
simplicity, recognisable to many and easy to establish your own personal learning style through
tests available on the Internet.[7] As a preliminary conclusion, it was found that teachers who
have a specific learning style, do have particular views on their professional development.
According to the Kolb classification, people have one or two dominant learning styles from
a total of four. There are two dimensions: from concrete to abstract, and from active to
reflective. This leads to four types of learning styles (see figure 4).
The complete Kolb model suggests that people can also progress through these learning
styles in phases. Furthermore, the learning style can be subject- or context-dependent.[8]
Figure 4: Learning stylesaccording to Kolb
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[6] Teachers: it clicks, professional development and ICT, Dutch Inspectorate of Education, May, 2006, in English translation[7] See p.e. http://chat.carleton.ca/~tblouin/Kolb's%20Leaning%20Styles%20Model/kolb.html; but one can easily search
for Kolb Learning Styles and find a test in the native language[8] See for an overview on learning styles: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Learning_styles
Active
Reflective
Concrete
Doer
Keen to experience firsthand, takes risks,likes to work with others, adaptable,impatient, intuitive
Dreamer
Reflective, great powers of imagination,full of ideas, emotional, spontaneous,social, likes to look and listen
Abstract
Decider
Actively experiments, practical and pragmatic, more interested in things than people, deductive,result-oriented
Thinker
Abstract thinker, conceptual, inductive, logical,analytical, rational
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There are other ways to categorise learning styles. Dunn recognises the following widely used
learning styles, which have entered into common parlance: visual, aural, tactile and kinaesthetic.[9]
Richard Riding’s classification uses two dimensions.[10] One dimension spans the extremes of
verbal and visual. People on the verbal side like to talk and read about things. They rarely
illustrate things with diagrams or plans. Visual people think in pictures and draw figures.
Along the other dimension, we find the holistic and the analytical approach. The analyst likes
to look at the various parts of a story; the holist prefers to see the whole picture.
Gardner’s eight intelligences[11] have really caught on in educational theory: visual/spatial,
verbal/linguistic, logical/mathematical, physical/kinaesthetic, musical/rhythmic, interpersonal,
intrapersonal, naturalist. This classification is well known and often used in teaching and learning
situations.
Human Dynamics identifies the interaction between people using three universal principles:
cognitive, emotional and physical.[12] These principles combine in people in various proportions to
form distinct personality dynamics. Five of these personality dynamics are very prevalent. It is
estimated that in Western cultures 5% of people are cognitive/physical, 25% emotional/cognitive,
10% physical/cognitive, 55% emotional/physical and 5% physical/emotional.
There are tests[13] that people can use to assess themselves on five major dimensions of
personality. In the literature, these are known as the ‘Big Five’. Key words in this context are:
1) negative emotional, resilient, calm sensible, imperturbable
2) extravert, ambivert, changeable from soloist to collaborative approach, low stimulus
threshold
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PEDAGOGICAL ADVISORY GROUP
[9] Dunn, How to Implement and Supervise a Learning Styles Program, 1996[10] Riding, and Cheema (1991). ‘Cognitive Styles-An overview and integration’. Educational Psychology 11(3 and 4):
pp.193-215.[11] H. Gardner, (1975) The Shattered Mind, New York: Knopf, see also:http://www.infed.org/thinkers/gardner.htm.[12] Seagall & Horne, Human Dynamics, a new framework for understanding people and realizing the potential in our
organization, Scriptum management, 1998.[13] See: http://similarminds.com/big5.html
PAG_part_II_new 27.3.2007 12:04 Stránka 46
3) open, moderate-minded, not curious or creative, but sometimes surprising
4) altruistic, adaptable, friendly, helpful, team player, conflict-avoiding
5) conscientious, focused, disciplined, achievement-oriented, compulsive, arrogant
If we agree that people have different styles and personal characteristics, eTwinning offers
a great variety of people to collaborate with and projects to carry out, so we see eTwinning as
an ideal frame for all learning styles and therefore as a great potential for personal
development. This does not mean that you can only match if you are the same type of learner.
Our reflections are meant to give some insight in personalities and in the need for a broad
scale of projects (like eTwinning) to accommodate all these different types. We also hope that
involved teachers are aware of their personal learning styles and according to that are able to
choose ways of professional development that fit best to their own characteristics.
2.4 Views on education
Finally, a very important personal characteristic of teachers within the framework of professional
development is her/his view on education. This relates to the views of the teacher on:
• The content of the curriculum: is the teacher strongly based on disciplines and theory on
the one hand or more problem based, starting from real life practices and situations on
the other hand;
• The responsibility the teacher will give to the pupils: will the teacher be fully in control
of the educational process or will the teacher give faith and responsibility to the pupils
in order to let them make their own decisions on planning and results?
• The pedagogical relationship the teacher wants to establish between him/her and the pupils:
does the teacher want to act as the expert or does the teacher want to be a fellow-learner?
These three dimensions are more extensively described in the PAG-paper on Pedagogical
Issues. A method for understanding a personal view of education had been developed by
Kennisnet ICT op school, the Dutch support organisation for using ICT in education. In this
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tool, there is a distinction between education as transfer, interaction and construction. In a test
one can investigate if there is a balance between this educational philosophy, knowledge and
skills, availability of educational software and ICT infrastructure.[14]
With regard to teacher’s professional development it may be said that projects in eTwinning
support learning situations which are authentic, give more responsibility to pupils, and ask
for teachers to take more of a coaching role.
2.5 Personal professional development in eTwinning
As stated earlier, the eTwinning program is a complex yet innovative context for teacher
professional development. Teachers in eTwinning:
• have to be prepared for collaboration,
• must be willing to share responsibilities with others,
• have to motivate their pupils to work in quite a new way,
• need specific skills in the field of ICT, management and curriculum design.
In matching schools and teachers to each other to perform a collaborative project, one should
take into account the differences mentioned above which influence the willingness to devel-
op collaboration and participate fully. Within the framework of CBAM, it is important that par-
ticipants do not differ by more than one stage, otherwise the differences between the teach-
ers in terms of their abilities, expectations and involvement could be too great, although some-
times pairing ICT novices with ICT experts can encourage knowledge transfer between them.
However it is more difficult to match learning styles of teachers in collaboration. Some
people argue that a mix of learning styles is preferable. Some say that a homogenous group
of teachers will be more successful. We argue here that it is at least important to recognise
the differences in learning styles, so that people can cope with their mutual differences and
characteristics.
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[14] See: http://ictopschool.labq.nl/uk/main.html
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Finally, teachers’ views on education are certainly worth careful consideration. If these views
are not exchanged and discussed prior to engaging in an eTwinning project, differences can
easily lead to frustration and misunderstanding, while expected and recognised differences
could lead to more understanding, innovation and professional development.
2.6 Working on personal professional development
There are a number of ways in which one can work on his or her own professional
development. From the previous considerations, it is clear that joining an eTwinning project
in itself is a very good way to stimulate such development. In a very implicit but recognisable
way, teachers can grow, master competencies and derive enjoyment and satisfaction from
collaboration. However there is also a variety of explicit professional development activities.
Within eTwinning, the Professional Development Workshop (PDW) concept is well known.
In most of the European countries, PDWs have been organised for between 50 and 100
teachers. Half of these teachers were from the home country, while the other half
represented other eTwinning countries. The main goal of these PDWs is to establish
partnerships, and this often happened during the two PDW days. Another goal and outcome
of a PDW is the stimulation and motivation of the teachers, training for collaboration,
defining useful and reachable projects and using the eTwinning tools.
In a number of countries, other professional development activities have been organised.
There were national conferences and eTwinning days. In Germany, there are “contact
training” events such as German-Czech-Polish or Hungarian – Slovakian contact training; the
idea being to bring teachers from bordering countries together. Some countries (e.g. UK,
Greece, Poland, the Netherlands) work with eTwinning ambassadors and peer learning
approaches. Groups of teachers are coached by these ambassadors and helped to set up
projects and find partners. If teachers have difficulties with certain specific ICT
competencies, they can be helped through courses and training sessions.
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Another important channel for delivering training is through web-based materials. Estonia
and Spain, for example, designed interactive courses for practical reasons - but the web can
also host discussion forums, galleries of successful examples, and project descriptions. These
are hosted on the international eTwinning portal, as well as on national eTwinning portals.
The helpdesk is worthy of mention. Many countries have a personal helpdesk where
teachers can pose their questions and get help. This informal knowledge acquisition plays
a crucial role for teachers who do not attend formal training courses or workshops.
Finally, the best professional development in our view is participation in a project. By
undertaking a project and collaborating with other teachers, professional development is
a valuable by-product and complements a teacher’s work. In relation to this, it is worth noting
that, do teachers not only develop professionally, they can also gain recognition for their work
and their school through the quality labels available both at national and European Level.[15]
According to the nature of one’s level of involvement, competencies, learning styles and
ambitions, special activities and organisational modes, engagement in projects can contribute
highly to the gains made in a teacher’s professional development. If several teachers in one
school join an eTwinning project, they can organise peer reviews, or a more experienced teacher
can be the mentor of a less experienced teacher. In addition, the team can organise networking
sessions for evaluation and sharing experiences or give presentations to parents and colleagues,
reaping benefit from such outputs. Also, by knowing more about their own personalities,
teachers can develop projects in ways that ensure the tasks match their own styles.
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[15] More information at http://www.eTwinning.net
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2.7 Conclusion
All these examples and teacher characteristics show that it is important to recognise the
needs and situations of the teachers involved. An eTwinning teacher who was assigned to
a project by a more senior member of staff, but who has never got involved in any email
project, has no idea of team teaching, project work and giving responsibility to pupils will
require professional development and training aimed at (intra- and inter-)personal skills and
should be introduced to user friendly best practices.
eTwinning teachers who are very experienced in international collaboration projects and
who have, for example, undertaken several email projects with pupils, or offered webquests
in a foreign language, can be challenged to share their experience through their own school
and school partners, and they should be given opportunities to use their abilities to develop
a whole school concept.
Of course, most teachers fall between these two extremes. Nevertheless, it is important to
establish the target group for specific professional development activities in terms of stage
of involvement. Such considerations are useful for those who are planning professional
development sessions and for the teachers who want to know where they fit within different
categorisation models. Individual teachers reflecting on their own practice and experience
might also discover on their own what eTwinning or any international collaboration and ICT
use can bring to their personal and professional development.
Let us now consider how these reflections on the personal level of professional development
can contribute to the school as a whole as a learning organisation, and how schools can
contribute through their vision and human resource management to the personal
development of their teachers.
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3. Professional development on school level: the school as a learning organisation
Aristotle said, “one swallow does not make a summer”. A school improves much more
slowly when individual teachers improve their work without any connection to an
overall concept or framework. Since eTwinning projects have the potential to cater for
professional improvement, why not make good use of eTwinning at school level?
In many cases teachers are lonely explorers and do not share their experiences – success or
failure – with others. Even a simple professional training afternoon, workshop, lecture or
a conference can be more effective after discussing them with colleagues. Sometimes
eagerness lasts longer and the person who experiments can go further because he or she
talks about the enjoyment and hardship that the process brings.
All teachers must have experienced how much more enjoyable it is to undertake training
when they attend with colleagues with whom they can communicate during and after the
training. There are many more cases where a professional challenge has more influence on
an individual’s performance just because there are “soul mates” in the staff team with whom
they can share their thoughts.
In talking about professional development, we can explore another angle: how can a school
best benefit from an innovative project? It is clear that the more teachers work on a project
and the more they do that on a conscious level, the more it affects the whole school.
However, when a task or project is part of a bigger picture, with the school fitting them into
the vision of the school and into the curriculum, the impact is greatly enhanced.
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To be really effective, the school needs a culture of in-house professional development that
is peer-supported and promotes team learning. Senior management should also promote
professional development of staff in international and intercultural settings. If the school has
a strategic goal to be open towards Europe, it needs to promote a culture of collaboration
and continuous development. This is also an ideal framework for supporting teachers in their
individual professional development. We will call this a ‘whole school approach’.
There is a significant amount of research and evidence about the benefits of both ICT in
education, and a ‘whole school approach’ within the school improvement literature. We
found more than enough to read about the impact of international and intercultural
projects. However it is difficult to find anything where at least two of these elements are
combined, and we have not been able to identify research specifically dealing with whole
school improvement using ICT in international projects.
3.1 School improvement and ICT
‘School development’ and ‘whole school approach’ are widely used terms in education.
Researchers and policy makers have been applying them when talking about the future of
ICT in schools. In most schools, even in the UK where significant efforts have been taken,
“technology is used in the traditional classroom setting. […] Many school leaders do not
have an effective whole school strategy for the implementation of ICT, preventing it being
used effectively.” While in other areas of society technology transforms the way we do
things, in the field of education it seems that teachers tend to accept technology when it
can be adapted to their usual and existing teaching styles.[16]
The British Educational Communications and Technology Agency (Becta) has produced
numerous publications on the impact of ICT on schools, including on whole-school
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[16] Haldenby, Rainbow and Mitchell: Supporting Supply Side reform: Technology in English state education;http://www.reform.co.uk/filestore/pdf/061006%20Technology%20report.pdf
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improvement.[17] In this paper, British and international research findings are summarised.
The term “whole-school improvement” is used: “to describe the wide range of ways in which
schools can progress and develop in order to raise standards, and the role that ICT can play
in this process.”
The authors claim that schools can maximise the impact of ICT by ensuring that ICT is used
as a part of a wider programme of school development, and not in isolation. The stages of
school improvement described above in the previous part of this paper (except for zero
level) are about creating or having a wider view. Providing an ICT environment across the
school and training learners and teachers does not lead automatically to school
improvement in itself. As the research says ICT must be part of a wider, holistic view, and
should only assist as an additional tool or resource for school development, not as the
catalyst for reform. This does not mean that ICT cannot play a major role in school
improvement. There are several case studies about schools where ICT played a basic role in
catalysing real changes. [18]
The Becta reports also list the ways in which ICT can contribute to raising the level of the
school. Among the six factors listed there are three that are, or can be, closely connected to
international projects, especially eTwinning:
• Raising pupil motivation
• Improving pupil behaviour
• Enhancing communications both within and between schools.
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[17] Becta, What the research says about ICT and whole school improvement, 2003.http://www.becta.org.uk/corporate/publications/documents/Research19_whole%20school.pdf
[18] Learning to change: ICT in Schools. OECD, 2001.OECD/CERI ICT Programme. ICT and School Improvement. Executive Summary for Ireland, OECD, 2001;http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/45/29/2741671.pdfOECD/CERI ICT Programme. ICT and School Improvement. Executive Summary for Norway, OECD, 2001;http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/31/45/2732632.pdfOECD/CERI ICT Programme. ICT and School Improvement. Executive Summary for Greece, OECD, 2001;http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/46/46/2737919.pdf
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Australian research[19] (Moyle, 2006) on how leadership contributes to making ICT a means
of whole school development, based on 400 interviews with leading teachers, concludes
that where there is a whole-school approach the school – among other factors - has a vision
where ICT is integrated and it is clearly stated, they have a well understood planning process,
access to technologies in all classrooms, time allocation for teachers’ professional learning,
technical support, an ICT committee, budget allocation including professional learning of the
staff, an ICT replacement plan, intranet with help facilities, up to date software, and
educational and technical support for classes to trial and develop learning with ICT.
Similar findings were apparent in the South East Asian SchoolNet evaluation, which showed
100 per cent of pupils doing online collaboration with other schools would want to repeat
the experience. Also, it was found that international collaboration helped facilitate
transformation of teacher-pupil relationships, where technically expert teenagers would give
IT support to their teachers. [20]
Most schools are far from this stage although there are some examples such as the Lent Rise
School[21] in the UK. However, thinking strategically, the school should consider the physical,
pedagogical, philosophical and practical issues with a focus on professional learning.
3.2 School improvement and international collaboration
International projects can also contribute to many aspects of learning and teaching, and can be
integrated into parts of the school vision. School involvement in ICT-supported international
projects like eTwinning varies just like teacher involvement, so it is worth using the same
simplified CBAM for ICT-Innovation for the school as a learning community (see figure 5).
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[19] Moyle K, University of Camberra, Leadership and Learning with ICT. Voices of the Profession. Australia 2006.http://www.iste.org/Content/NavigationMenu/Research/NECC_Research_Paper_Archives/NECC_2006/Moyle_Kathryn_NECC06.pdf#search=%22Moyle%20Leadership%20Learning%20with%20ICT%22
[20] comment on unpublished report by personal communication[21] See http://www.lentrise.bucks.sch.uk/
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3.3 An integrated view of school improvement
What is a Whole School Partnership in e-Twinning? Here is a very practical description:
“A whole school partnership exists when two or more e-Twinning -schools work together with more
than one to one teacher; with more than one to one class in different subjects or themes and in
different grades. They use different modes of collaboration in a sustainable partnership at different
levels of theschool.” [22]
PEDAGOGICAL ADVISORY GROUP
Level of School Involvement
5. Regular Use and Leadership Role
4. Regular Use
3. Some Use of One or Two Types
2. Some Knowledge
1. Minimal Awareness Level
Action towards international projects and collaboration
Is regularly involved in international collaborative projects that areintegral parts of their curriculum, teaching plan and vision. Theyregularly reflect on its impact on learning and school life.
Has been involved in some international projects and is workingon integrating it in the curriculum, teaching plans and the schoolvision.
Has had some experience in international collaboration and wantsto explore and investigate its potential to improve teaching andlearning.
Has interest in international projects and is ready to participate insuch a project. Appoints a group of teachers and seeks for thefeedback.
Is interested in international collaboration but happy to delegatethe task to 1 or 2 teachers. No or little communication in staff,loose or no connection with curriculum.
[22] Hogenbirk Pieter, presentation at Professional Teacher Development Workshops, eTwinning
Figure 5: Levels andcorresponding actions of
school involvement
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Figure 6: Learning outcomes
In order to develop such a whole school partnership, a school must have in our view,
a shared vision on the role of international collaboration, on ICT in education, on the
objectives for learning and on the role of professional development. We will use the work
of Hill and Cévola[23] on shared beliefs and understanding about teaching and learning and
apply that to the whole school approach within eTwinning. We do this because we realise
that both collaboration and ICT are tools for better achievement of pupils and professional
development of staff, but also, and not just automatically, for raising the school’s level. To
achieve these outcomes there is a need for changes in (see figure 6):
• Leadership and coordination • Standards and targets
• Monitoring and assessment • Classroom teaching programme
• Professional learning teams • School and class organisation
• Intervention and special assistance • Home, school and community partnerships
In the following we elaborate on all of these eight aspects.
[23] Hill, P.W. and Crévola, C.A.M. (1997). The Literacy Challenge in Australian Primary Schools, IARTV Seminar SeriesNo. 69, November
Home, school andcommunity partnerships Standards and targets
School and classorganisation
Classroom teachingstrategies
Leadership andcoordination
Intervention and specialassistance
Beliefs andunderstandings
Professional learningteams
Monitoring andAssessment
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3.3.1 Leadership and coordination
All whole-school approach improvements and projects call for distinctive leadership. The
principal or another senior member of staff has to make sure that the target activity fits into
the vision of the school, and is important to every member of the staff, as well as the pupils
and their parents. The way in which the project fulfils the school’s vision must be verbalised
and aired, discussed and agreed. It does not matter if it is initiated through a bottom-up or
a top-down approach, and the leadership can be distributed. The change that occurs should
not be too large and too fast but rather a step-by-step process with good planning and
coordination. The coordinator should be a teacher who is able to motivate their fellow
colleagues and the pupils; someone with organisational skills and knowledge of or an interest
in international collaboration. This must be a person who is well accepted by the staff and who
is a good team player. These coordinators also need professional development to help them
take responsibility for integrating eTwinning into the school’s teaching and learning strategy.
An increasing number of schools have policy papers on ICT usage or Acceptable Use Policies,
regulating the purposeful, ethical and safe use of computers at school. There are schools that have
the written policies involving pupils in international projects or pupil exchanges. We have seen
many examples of teacher professional development policy papers and plans, including ICT and
project skills. We have seen that eTwinning is a rich field of possible professional development
where ICT usage and intercultural/curricular projects are integrated. Generating a policy paper on
eTwinning raises the involvement of the whole school and makes it part of the school policy and
school life, aimed not only for improving key competences of learners but also those of staff.
School managers may find the following guidelines useful[24]:
• Make sure your mission statement encompasses the European/international dimension
and also the integrated use of ICT
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[24] Based on Global Gateway, Bringing an International Dimension to Education,http://www.globalgateway.org.uk/Default.aspx?page=2334
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• Establish the principle that all pupils and learners have an entitlement to international
experience
• Make sure you develop a comprehensive international strategy and development plan, which
is endorsed by any management or academic boards, and accompanied by scheduled reports.
• Set up a team for international activities, which represents all curriculum areas and meets
regularly to review progress and report to the board.
3.3.2 Standards and targets
The team or school that is tasked with the overall view of international collaboration and ICT
usage will set targets for these collaborations. The targets must be in tune with the school vision,
either deepening or widening it in accordance with the overall learning programme or
curriculum. The standards set can be viewed as school achievements and/or pupil achievements.
The school can set goals for different age groups or grades. For example, one minimum goal can
be for each pupil to take an active part at least once in an international project in a given time
period. This might involve communication with pupils from other countries and will involve
carrying out at least one task in an international collaboration using ICT tools. A much higher-
level concern sets the goal of continuous/regular participation in different international projects
during the whole study period of each child. It is of course up to the school what the targets
and the standards are, but these standards must be set at a level that all the pupils are able to
achieve with or without help and within the school’s resource limitations.
3.3.3 Monitoring and assessment
The team working on eTwinning or any other international collaboration should develop tools
and a methodology for evaluating all elements of the project including learner development,
professional teacher development, and also the development of the whole school as a learning
community. The assessment in some cases can be part of already applied assessment tools if
the targets are well defined and fit into different subjects or cross-curricular areas. Monitoring
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and assessment are means of self-reflection and provide information to adjust the project to
the needs of the participants whether they are teachers or pupils. Self and peer evaluation, or
portfolios, can be included as integral parts of the monitoring process. It is desirable that all
teachers and learners are able to carry out each activity needed for the collaboration in
progress. It is worthwhile noting that the eTwinning action has these processes built in through
the progress cards, eTwinning prizes and the Quality label which all offer opportunities for
teachers to review and reflect on the processes and outcome of their work.
3.3.4 Classroom teaching programme
International (ICT) projects basically cater for teamwork, intercultural understanding and using
ICT as a set of tools for communication, creation or analysis. When the project involves the use
of a foreign language, this can either be seen as a tool or as one of the goals. Learning does not
just occur, and planning the teaching program can be the first or a later step in the process. It
might sound strange for the first time that the learning programme can be different in the
twinning teams/schools. A school can for example decide on integrating eTwinning in the
curriculum of grade 3 on animals, while the partner school basically connects the same topic
to language learning. Both are concerned with ICT usage, one may be concentrating on finding
and managing pictures, the other on connecting sounds to pictures.
3.3.5 Professional learning teams
“In order to impact on teachers’ beliefs and understandings and to establish a process for
institutionalising a whole-school approach […] an effective approach to ongoing professional
development that impacts broadly on staff within the school is essential.” [25]
In other areas of whole school improvement, it is advisable to have a mentor to support
teachers. This is unlikely to be an option for eTwinning schools or teams of teachers.
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[25] Hill, P.W. and Crévola, C.A.M. (1997). The Literacy Challenge in Australian Primary Schools, IARTV Seminar SeriesNo. 69, November
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Professional learning can take place within the eTwinning team while they are planning and
talking about the project. Regular meetings for planning, monitoring and analysing the work
are special occasions for learning. All national agencies provide for some professional
workshops but they are mostly orientated towards specific areas, not at the whole field of
international collaboration. They are rarely about the process of achieving the unique targets
set by each eTwinning school. Intercultural and international learning also has potential for
teachers within an eTwinning project. Discussion is an ancient tool for learning, for doing
something better. Forum and email communication among teachers can be an effective means
of professional development from immediate problem solving on a forum to online
conferences. These tools and events provide an excellent opportunity for achieving a broader
understanding of different approaches to education within Europe.
3.3.6 School and class organisation
Before starting an eTwinning project (or during the course of one) the school should think
about whether there is a need for some organisational change either to perform better in
general or for the sake of the project. Fortunately, it is not hard to find areas of the curriculum
where international collaboration fits in. The key aspects are timing and access to ICT, also the
culture of teamwork among pupils. Hopefully international collaboration through eTwinning
means that the learners need regular and flexible access to computers, Internet and email. In
many cases schools have a very tight security policy that does not allow for certain activities.
In order to avoid disappointment and failure, the school might decide to soften its policy or
plan the project very carefully within their limits while maintaining the idea of real
collaboration. It is also very important that learners can use ICT tools during class work to
perform their eTwinning collaboration tasks. It does not mean that work is limited to classes
but eTwinning – as a whole school approach – is not an extra-curricular, pastime activity that
the wealthy or the diligent can choose to carry out.
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3.3.7 Intervention and special assistance
Even when working in teams, teachers and pupils might face problems that nobody is able
to solve. In an eTwinning project these problems are most likely to arise with the ICT, project
management or group dynamics. It is the task of the principal or the senior staff member
who is responsible for the implementation of the project to ensure that there is someone
who is willing and able to assist when technical problems occur. In most cases, it is the
school system administrator or an IT teacher who is involved in the project. They need to
realise when there are certain shortcomings that need an organised workshop. Usually this
is easier to solve than management problems. The National Support Service might provide
help with the latter. It is desirable that all teachers and learners are able to carry out all
activities needed for the collaboration in progress.
3.3.8 Home, school and community partnership
There is evidence that those schools that have a strong network do perform better. This must
also be true for eTwinning, especially from the perspective of a whole school approach. Parents
should know what and why their children do within the framework of the project and how it
serves their development and future. There might be parents who have useful ideas or have the
potential to help when intervention and special assistance are needed. Having links with other
members of the community besides families can bring more colour and interest to the project.
Local government, institutions, companies and ventures, interested and capable individuals can
all contribute to and enhance its success. Even fund raising for project purposes can make these
links stronger and more beneficial. Presenting the outcome of the project often happens in
front of the local community in the form of a public event.
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3.4 Stages in school improvement
Besides the whole school approach and the Becta view described above, it is worth looking
at the International Federation of Information Processing (IFIP) model of ICT and school
improvement[26]. It says that there are four approaches to – or better to say four stages of –
ICT development in schools, namely emerging, applying, integrating and transforming ICT.
The framework provides the characteristics of each stage at different levels: (1) vision, (2)
learning and pedagogy, (3) development plans and policies, (4) facilities and resources, (5)
understanding of the curriculum, (6) professional development for school staff, (7)
community, and (8) assessment. This framework provides help for analysing the state of art
and planning the future of individual schools in the field of computer supported
international projects that improve learning and helps the professional development of the
staff. See figure 7 in appendix.
3.5 Conclusion
Having a clear vision of the school as a learning community can help the school decide how
to benefit from international and intercultural cooperation, ICT and combining the two in
eTwinning. It is not only learners who benefit by taking part in such projects. All teachers
and indeed the whole school can gain added value from participation. eTwinning can be
considered as professional development in the form of community learning inside and across
schools. There are several stages, from one teacher taking part in eTwinning to a large-scale,
whole school project as a driver for school development, including the professional
development of staff. Innovation is not about doing more, but about doing things differently
in a more interesting, motivating and more effective way. Education is heading towards
greater flexibility, choice and personalisation. New technologies play an essential role in
achieving this transformation of the learning environment. They provide a great variety in
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[26] See: http://wwwedu.ge.ch/CPTIC/prospective/projets/unesco/en/table1.html
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learning and communication methods in the playground of international projects such as
eTwinning. Being conscious and thinking as a learning community results in greater
achievements both on a personal level (i.e. pupils and teachers) and on a whole school level.
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Figure 7: IFIP Frameworkfor ICT development in schools
Vision
LearningPedagogy
DevelopmentPlans andPolicies
Facilities andresources
Dominated byindividual interestLimitedPragmatic
Teacher centredDidactic
Non-existentAccidentalRestrictive policiesNo planned funding
Standaloneworkstations foradministrationIndividual classroomsComputers and printersWord processingSpreadsheets,databases, presentationSchool administrationsoftwareGames
Driven by ICT specialist
Factual knowledgebased learningTeacher centredDidacticICT a separate subject
LimitedICT resource leadCentralised policiesHardware and softwarefundingAutomating existingpractices
Computer lab orindividual classroomsfor ICT specificoutcomesComputers, printersand limited peripheralsWord processingSpreadsheets,databases, presentationICT softwareInternet access
Driven by subject specialistsDiscrete areas
Learner centred learningCollaborative
Individual subject plansinclude ICT Permissivepolicies
Computer lab and/orclassroom computersNetworked classrooms,intranet and InternetICT and learning resourcerich learning centresRange of devices, including:digital cameras, scanners,video and audio recorders,graphical calculators,portable computers, remotesensing devicesVideo-conferencing Wordprocessing, spreadsheets,databases, presentationsoftware
LeadershipAcceptance by entirelearning communityNetwork centred community
Critical thinking andinformed decision makingWhole learner, multi-sensory, preferred learningstyles
ICT is integral to overallschool development planAll pupilsAll teachersInclusive policiesAll aspects of ICT fundingintegral to overall schoolbudgetIntegral professionaldevelopment
Whole school learning andICT infrastructure andaccess to technologyresources a wide range of current devicesEmphasis on a diverse setof learning environmentsAll of the above andWeb based learning spacesBrainstormingConferencing andcollaborationDistance educationWeb coursewarePupil self-managementsoftware
Emerging Applying Integrating Transforming
3.6 Appendix
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Emerging Applying Integrating Transforming
Facilities andresources
Understanding of thecurriculum
Professionaldevelopmentfor schoolstaff
Community
ICT LiteracyAwareness of softwareResponsibility ofindividual teachers
Individual interest
Discrete donationsProblem drivenAccidental
Applying softwarewithin discrete subjectsUse of artificial andisolated contexts
ICT applicationstrainingUnplannedPersonal ICT skills
Seeking donations andgrantsParental / communityinvolvement in ICT
Range of subjectorientated contentMultimedia authoring,video/audio productionRange of subject specificsoftware
Integration with non-ICTcontentIntegrated learningsystemsAuthentic contextsProblem solving projectmethodologyResources based learning
Subject specificProfessional skillsIntegrating subject areasusing ICTEvolving
Subject based learningcommunity providingdiscrete, occasionalassistance, by requestGlobal and localnetworked communities
Virtual and real timecontexts, new worldmodellingICT is accepted as apedagogical agent itselfThe curriculum isdelivered by the web aswell as by staff
Focus on learning andmanagement oflearningSelf-managed, personalvision and plan, schoolsupportedInnovative and creativeIntegrated learningcommunity – pupils /teachers co-learners
Broad based learningcommunity activelyinvolved, parents andfamilies, business,industry, religiousorganisations,universities, vocationalschools, voluntaryorganisationsGlobal and local, realand virtualSchool is a learningresource for thecommunity – physicallyand virtually
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Emerging Applying Integrating Transforming
Assessment Equipment basedBudget orientatedDiscrete subjectsDidacticPaper and pencilControllingClosed tasksResponsibility ofindividual teacher
Skills basedTeacher centred Subject focused Reporting levels Moderated withinsubject areas
IntegratedPortfolios Subject oriented Learner centred Pupil responsibility Multiple media choicesto demonstrateattainmentModerated across subject areas Social and ethical as well as technical
ContinuousHolistic – the wholelearnerPeer mediatedLearner centredLearning communityinvolvementOpen endedProject based
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The views expressed in this publication are those of the authors and not necessarily those of the eTwinningCentral Support Service.
Copyright © eTwinning Central Support Service, rue de Trèves 61, 1040, Brussels, Belgium
1. Authors: Conor Galvin, Anne Gilleran, Pieter Hogenbirk, Márta Hunya, Michelle Selinger, Bettina Zeidlerprint run 1000 | Layout, DTP and Printing: Hofi Studio, Prague, Czech Republic
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